- Pain in children is often unrecognized and undertreated, particularly in neonates. At any ages prematures, neonates and children do feel pain, and require analgesia as adults do
- If a medical procedure is painful in adults, it must be considered painful in children
- Newborns may experience a greater sensitivity to pain, and are much more susceptible to the long-term effects of pain, compared to older children and adults
- Adequate treatment of pain may be associated with decreased clinical complications and decreased mortality
- The appropriate use of pharmacological devices, associated to non pharmacological tools, prevent, reduce or eliminate pain in most clinical situations
- Sedation should be administered with care: it may, or it may not alleviate pain, but may mask children’s behavioural response to pain
- Clinical units should develop written guidelines and protocols for the managements of pain in neonates and children
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